Drafting contracts involves skills that can be developed and honed. The ability to write well is the most valuable tool a paralegal can acquire. The following article provides some suggestions for drafting a well written contract.

Tips on How to Write Good Contracts - a paralegal's point of view.

Hereafter are the basics:

Think hard, define the purpose of the contract and the client's interests.

Research and check your facts and applicable laws.

Develop a checklist of items that the contract might or should address such as applicable laws, contract formation, conditions, enforcement, breach, and remedies for the aggrieved party.

Draft an outline in a logical and orderly fashion. This will prevent omission or duplication of essential terms.
Group similar items together.

Be brief.
Omit surplus words and eliminate unnecessary paragraphs and sentences.
A single word can often substitute for a verbose phrase (e.g. “due to the fact that” can be replaced by “because”, “file an action against” can be replaced by “sue” ) and verbose phrase are often compound prepositions (e.g. “by means of” can be replaced by “by”,“in relation to” can be replaced by “about”).

Simplify your language.
Forget legalese.
Use clear and precise terms.
Avoid indefinite pronouns if possible and replace them with a noun.
Avoid synonyms to prevent confusion. Avoid “etc.”, it gives the reader no new information, and only demonstrates that either the writer does not know or is too lazy to tell the reader.

Use base verbs rather than the derivative nouns. They will give sentences movement and life.

Use active voice to energize the writing.
With active voice the subject of the sentence acts.
Passive voice usually requires more words than active voice.
Passive voice creates detached abstraction within the sentence.

Avoid sexist language. Change the wording of male oriented expressions to include both men and women.
Use parallel construction when referring to both sexes.
Avoid masculine singular pronouns when not referring to a male.
Although “he or she” can be used in moderation, it is often best to rewrite the sentence. You can for example, omit the pronoun if it is unnecessary, use the second person rather than the third person, and use the plural rather than the singular.

Check for spelling, punctuation, and grammatical errors.

These are just basic suggestions for paralegals for better drafting.

But we want to hear from you too. What are your best contract writing tips? This article will be available on line for comments!

View on AmazonContracts for Paralegals: Legal Principles and Practical ApplicationsLinda Spagnola
"This text introduces the key concepts in the legal field of Contracts in a fresh light, while presenting the topics in a straightforward and comprehensive manner."